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Posted on 04/05/2004 8:12:32 AM PDT by yonif
Israelis with valid gun licenses should carry a weapon with them during the Passover holiday, Police Commissioner Shlomo Aharonishki said Monday.
The police have beefed up their deployments for the Passover holiday, which starts Monday night, as all the security services move to boost the already high state of alert.
Aharonishki on Sunday ordered the police to remain at the level of vigilance that has been in place since the assassination of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin last month.
Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz warned at Sunday's cabinet meeting that, "Terror organizations, in particular Hamas, will make every effort during Passover to carry out a large-scale attack."
Thousands of policemen, supplemented by IDF soldiers, were to be deployed to guard worshipers and vacationers over Passover. More than 1,000 police officers are being deployed Monday, Passover eve, in the Dan region alone, Israel Radio said.
David Baker, an official in the prime minister's office, told Haaretz on Monday that the security forces are "taking special precautions."
"Israelis are poised to welcome in Passover - the holiday of freedom - but at the same time we're taking special precautions against a multitude of terrorist threats posed by those bent on our destruction and those who are committed to perpetrating horrific terror attacks during the Passover holiday," Baker said.
Security forces have received more than 60 terror warnings, but police said they were not aware of any pinpointed threats, according to Israel Radio.
Police will erect temporary roadblocks and step up deployments in crowded venues. Guards will be posted outside synagogues. Extra staff will answer calls at police "100" hotline numbers. Special police deployments will patrol border areas to prevent terrorist infiltration.
Speaking to the cabinet Sunday, Mofaz said security officials are aware that Hamas' motivation to carry out attacks has intensified following the killing of Yassin.
Israel has therefore decided to take a series of preventive, anti-terror measures, including the enforcement of closures on the West Bank and Gaza Strip, which will remain in effect until after Independence Day, later this month. Also, Mofaz added, police and IDF deployments will be stepped up in Jerusalem and areas in which work on the separation fence has not been completed.
In addition, Mofaz stressed, security forces will continue to initiate actions to stop terror. Arrests are to be carried out against terror suspects; there will be a crackdown on arms smuggling; and selective assassinations will be carried out.
Mofaz recommended that members of the public continue with their holiday plans, while also remaining alert about possible suspicious objects. Mofaz said he is satisfied with these anti-terror preparations. "I very much hope the coming holidays will pass quietly," the defense minister said.
Intelligence reports indicate that Hamas has been in disarray since the Yassin killing, Mofaz added. Still, the security establishment is aware that Hamas seeks revenge, he said. Security officials have also received intelligence warnings about terror organization plans to attack Jewish targets overseas, Mofaz said.
A senior security official told Haaretz on Sunday that two recent anti-terror successes could reduce the chances of an attack being carried out over the holiday. Israeli security forces exposed a large Fatah terror effort in the Bethlehem area and a Hamas terror cell in Nablus. Around 40 members of these two groups have been detained.
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